The 2023 season has been a disaster for the New England Patriots. The team is 2-8 on the season, there are rumors that Bill Belichick could be fired and quarterback Mac Jones has regressed to the level of one of the worst quarterbacks in the league.
Jones struggled last season, but his issues this season seem to be far worse, as he appears lost at times on the field.
Many attributed Jones’ poor 2022 season to a lack of offensive structure for the Patriots, but with resources around him to succeed, Jones is unfortunately worse than he was a season ago.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the team is so concerned with Jones’ regression mechanically that they believe he is dealing with the yips – an unexplained loss of cognition and motor function that affects athletes.
𝗥𝗘𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧: The #Patriots are concerned that Mac Jones’ feet are such a mess that he now has the “𝗬𝗶𝗽𝘀”, per @AlbertBreer
Breer added: “They were sold a smart, efficient game managing quarterback and (instead) they’re getting a guy that makes a lot mistakes out there that… https://t.co/eyeyypo798 pic.twitter.com/QGNb8PsDMw
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) November 18, 2023
“They were sold a smart, efficient game managing quarterback and they’re getting a guy that makes a lot mistakes out there that doesn’t do the smart thing that often,” Breer said in an appearance on FS1’s The Herd.
“There’s not a lot of confidence in Mac Jones right now inside that building.”
The Patriots have their bye this week before they face another team going through a difficult season of their own next week in the New York Giants.